Hart gets partial victory in ethics hearing today
Post Published: 29 July 2010
Rep. Phil Hart
Voting along party lines, 4-3, the committee voted to dismiss conflict of interest allegations against the northern Idaho lawmaker, who also sits on the House Revenue and Taxation Committee. All Republicans, including Rep. Bert Stevenson, R-Rupert, and Rep. Rich Wills, R-Glenns Ferry, voted for dismissal of an ethics allegation that Hart had improperly failed to declare a conflict of interest when participating in tax issues that came up in the Legislature. All Democrats, including the committee’s vice chair, Rep. Wendy Jaquet, D-Ketchum, voted against dismiss-ing charges.
Jaquet made a motion that failed, also along party lines with a 3-4 vote, that would have recommended Hart be reprimanded and asked the House speaker to remove him from the committee.
Another part of the complaint wasn’t decided on, which is an allegation that Hart abused legislative privilege when seeking delays in tax disputes with the State Tax Commission.
Because Hart’s tax case is a separate legal proceeding that’s still ongoing, the committee held off on making a decision about that allegation. Options for that part of the ethics complaint, filed by the House minority leadership, include dismissal of the allegation or recommending censure, expulsion or a reprimand to the full House for approval.
Because that case is ongoing, the committe’s next meeting hasn’t been scheduled yet.
Otter’s budget chief “cautiously optimistic”
Post Published: 28 July 2010Wayne Hammon, Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter’s chief, visited the Twin Falls Rotary Club today to talk about the state budget and how things look in the future. Hammon said he’s “cautiously optimistic” that the economy has hit bottom and that no more cuts will be needed moving forward. At the same time, he said that levels of revenue have dropped so much that it will take several years to restore what’s been cut.
Here’s a video interview with Hammon.
Luna makes campaign stop in Twin Falls
Post Published: 28 July 2010Here’s a video interview with Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna, who made a campaign stop in Twin Falls on Tuesday. Luna, a Republican, is facing Democrat challenger Stan Olson in the November election. Olson recently retired as superintendent of Boise School District.
Luna: Financial situation will drive timeline for common core standards
Post Published: 23 July 2010Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna told teachers in Twin Falls that the financial condition of the state will drive any implementation and timeline for putting the common core standards into place in Idaho schools.
The common core standards, still under consideration in Idaho, are a set of standards for public schools that are aimed at boosting the expectations for students in an era dominated by competition in the global marketplace. Multiple states across the nation are looking at the standards, and Luna stressed that it’s a voluntary initiative instead of coming through a federal mandate.
To become part of Idaho’s education framework, the standards still need to be passed by the Idaho State Board of Education, and then sent to the Legislature for approval. Luna noted that before state budget cuts for education, there was a $13 million line item for textbooks. He said he’s hopeful that restoring funding back into individual categories like that will happen as the economic situation improves in the state.
Tom Luna visits Twin Falls teacher event
Post Published: 23 July 2010Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna visited the i-STEM Institute at the College of Southern Idaho on Thursday, where he visited with educators about the importance of science, technology engineering and mathematics in schools. We caught up with Luna after his speech for an interview. You can watch the video below.
University of Idaho gets $1.2 million gift
Post Published: 22 July 2010The University of Idaho is getting a $1.2 million grant from the Micron Technology Foundation for boosting science, technology, engineering and math.
From the press release:
At the heart of the new initiative – supported by major funding from the Micron Technology Foundation – is learning why some Idaho students may not perform well, or pursue careers, in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and developing educational programs based upon those findings.
With the Micron Foundation’s four-year, $1.2 million leadership gift, university researchers will reach out through the institution’s statewide presence to Idaho’s population – citizens, parents, teachers and students – and identify what creates barriers to STEM learning. Once those root causes are found, the university’s analysis of and findings from the data will be available to enable a next step of partnerships across the state to develop programs that will begin building increased STEM competitiveness.
“We appreciate the Micron Foundation’s leadership in helping the university and Idaho address critical barriers to learning and involvement in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, which should enhance the state’s ability to help the U.S. reclaim its global competitiveness,” said University of Idaho President Duane Nellis. “This is a core strength of the University of Idaho, through our land-grant mission: to develop comprehensive research and survey data and programs that can be used to effect change and better our state and the nation.”
The new STEM Educational Research Initiative takes a comprehensive approach analyzing current barriers that hinder STEM education, understanding how cultural, socio-economic, and rural and urban factors impact students’ ability to grasp the STEM disciplines, and STEM teacher education and development.
“The Micron Foundation is committed to helping our youth see how STEM plays a role in their everyday life and can be part of their future,” said Micron Foundation Executive Director Dee Mooney. “As a co-sponsor of the University of Idaho’s research initiative, we look forward to learning more about the way in which our communities can improve student experiences in STEM education to ultimately increase their success.”
The university already provides leadership in several collaborative STEM-focused programs, including the McCall Outdoor Science School, the annual Engineering Design EXPO, and the university’s partnership with Boise State and Idaho State universities in the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). These existing programs, and others to be developed, will give the university the setting in which to test its findings on what creates barriers to STEM and how to overcome those barriers.
In the news today
Post Published: 15 July 2010Gov. Butch Otter gives a thumbs-up to Magic Valley officials for landing C3, a company that will bring a call center with jobs that pay a starting wage of at least $8.50 an hour. Read the story here.
Rep. Phil Hart, R-Athol, denies allegiations in an ethics complaint filed against him stemming from unpaid federal and state taxes that he’s fighting. Read the story, and a copy of his response to the complaint, here.
No loyalty oath from Otter
Post Published: 14 July 2010Gov. Butch Otter isn’t interested in a “loyalty oath” that the Idaho GOP passed as part of its party platform, the Associated Press reports today.
From the AP:
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter says he doesn’t intend to sign a so-called loyalty oath that was incorporated into the Idaho Republican Party platform during its convention last month.
The first-term Republican governor says there are ideas in the platform he can support, but others he cannot. Otter says allegiance to a party platform cannot be determined with a single signature.
A plank in the platform requires candidates for elected office to sign a statement saying they support the GOP platform — or list the areas where they disagree.
Supporters claim the statement will help primary voters determine which candidates truly support core Republican principles.
Otter, who is running for a second term against Democrat Keith Allred, says he would consider spelling out objections to the platform in the next primary election.
Fiscal year 2010 ends
Post Published: 14 July 2010In the news today:
Gov. Butch Otter and GOP lawmakers weigh in on how the fiscal year 2010 budget ended. Democrats give their side, too. We have the story here.